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Saturday, March 17, 2018

Some of the best OSR adventures come from +Jeff Talanian 's publishing Northwind Publishing arm. Although they are written for and labeled with Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea, these adventures are readily usable with the OSR ruleset of your choice. I plan on running previous adventures that Jeff has published using Swords & Wizardry. these two will get added to the list. Sweet point for Beasts & Cannibals appears to be $44 - both adventures in print plus PDF. I'm in.

Did I mention it hit and surpassed its 10k funding goal in a day? Well done +Jeff Talanian . Well done.

THE ANTHROPOPHAGI OF XAMBAALA

The Anthropophagi of Xambaala, by Corey R. Walden, is an adventure in HYPERBOREA designed for from four to six characters of 1st through 3rd level.

Visitors to the desert city of Xambaala, beware! When the city slumbers, dæmoniacal cachinnations roll in from its outskirts, and dull totemic drumbeats rumble in the surrounding waste. Vile shrieks and noises out of nightmares bring shudders to the spines of even those who fancy themselves heroes, and when the eventide bell tolls residents lock themselves behind stout walls—for something sinister moves during the dead time. But the people of Xambaala do not speak of the hellish noises that haunt their city; only furtive whispers hint that those who trust in the safety of the inn of Aramis D’Athak oft disappear, vanishing into the unknown. And the sounds outside the city walls grow louder . . .

THE BEASTS OF KRAGGOTH MANOR

The Beasts of Kraggoth Manor, by Tim Callahan, is an adventure in HYPERBOREA designed for from four to six characters of 4th through 6th level.

Your party have travelled northeast from the great city of Khromarium, through the unforgiving expanse known as the Lug Wasteland. You undoubtedly seek greater riches in the north: ruined tombs secreting ancient artefacts, deep caves filled with long-lost Atlantean technology, or strange villages built atop sacred Hyperborean burial grounds that brim with pre–Green Death treasures. Finally, after having emerged from the treacherous bogs, you set up camp on a craggy outcropping that provides dry land and a modicum of protection from the crawling unknowns. Straightaway your attention is drawn by a nearby light source, a fire not more than 100 yards away. Through the cacophony of croaking frogs, buzzing insects, and hissing slimy things, a shriek of pain knifes through the air.

+Stan Shinn was at the GAMA (The Game Manufacturers Association) Trade Show earlier this week and came away with some interesting figures about D&D 5e released by WotC's Mark Price. Here's the takeaway:

— 2017 was the best year for D&D ever in terms of sales— Year 3 of D&D sales is stronger than their first year— Actual play streaming is a key driver of D&D’s success, with 9 million users watching D&D on Twitch— 8.6 million Americans have played D&D in the last 12 months (they did not give stats for overseas)

Certainly stuff to think about. A rising tide lifts all ships and 5e is certainly doing more to raise that tide than any other system right now.

Friday, March 16, 2018

The Tavern's Discord Server has been lively since it kicked off last summer. Not only is the text chat active close to 24/7 but the Wednesday Night Tavern Chat (voice plus text) keeps getting better.

Case in point - this past Wednesday, March 14th, I finally bowed out at 130 AM (Eastern) with the chat still going strong with nearly a dozen members logged in. That's for a chat that kicked off at 9 PM. And we didn't have Bill Webb holding court either, it was simply an amazing chat.

We currently have 403 members at The Tavern's Discord server (I'm sure there are some duplicate accounts, but the numbers rise every day)

I want to thank everyone that participates and or lurks in the weekly chats. Its been likened to a live, multi-participant weekly podcast that DOESN'T get recorded, so its fairly unique and an awesome chance to talk with members of our corner of the gaming universe, especially if you don't get to conventions all that often - if at all.

Haven't joined yet? There's plenty of time before the next voice chat (and text chat is going on as you read this):

Thursday, March 15, 2018

We were giving out MegaHeroes Priority Identification Cards at the Frog God Booth at Gary Con this past weekend and we had a few left, so I "liberated" them.

MegaHeroes is +Jim Wampler 's upcoming supers RPG that will be Kickstarted by Frog God Games this fall.

The cards are good for 20% off at the Frog God website. Don't ask me how, look at the pic above and it should be clear ;)

That being said, there are a limited number and they were only distributed at Gary Con. Here is your chance to have one mailed to you anywhere in the world. Well, you have 13 chances.

How do you get YOUR elite card?

Comment below with your thoughts on why you like supers RPGs, or if you don't like them, in what way do they fail for you. Comment by 6 PM Eastern, Monday March 19th, 2018 right here on this post. I'll pick thirteen recipients of this awesome honor that evening and will share the names with a new post that night.

Apparently WotC / OBS updated the file for the D&D Rules Cyclopedia along with dropping the price on the POD version of the rules but it isn't without issues.

Here's the recent comments on the RC page since the file was updated.

Tony M Mar 14, 2018 7:39 am EST
This is all very confusing. Two weeks ago I ordered the PoD version and paid 21.48 sterling for the privilege, now the price has dropped to 12.95 sterling but consensus suggests my PoD copy may be superior to what is currently being offered...
An explanation for the price drop and the PDF 'update' would be appreciated, either from WotC, OBS, or both.

Joshua G Mar 14, 2018 6:43 am EST
Wow, the "updated" pdf really sucks compared to the previous one, so blurry and washed-out looking. Why is the price reduced so much for PoD? Makes me VERY suspicious of purchasing this in print format now. I know mistakes happen, but this is really awful.

Scott S Mar 14, 2018 2:54 am EST
The new PDF is awful and blurry, the older one (pre Mar 13) is fine and also good as PoD - don't get as PoD until it's confirmed fixed IMO.

Christopher S Mar 13, 2018 7:18 pm EST
I put in an order for a hardcover copy of this yesterday afternoon, only to get up this morning and find out that the PDF has been changed and the price has dropped 50% in the last 24hrs...still excited to get the book, but that hurts.

Richard T Mar 13, 2018 5:10 pm EST
The new scan released this week is very blurry compared to the old one. I'm glad I still have my original download. Didn't they look at it before releasing it???

Rodger D Mar 13, 2018 7:21 pm EST
Yer its very bad. The worst I've seen. They need to redo it or put an older one back up.

Rodger D Mar 13, 2018 7:27 pm EST
My August 2016 download is way way better then this one. So much sharper.

Jeff E Mar 13, 2018 10:42 pm EST
Also, it's flat. That is, there is no text, just a static image. You can't highlight and copy a portion of text, as you could before.

Michael S Mar 13, 2018 3:24 pm EST
yeah, I just downloaded the new one and it's horribly dithered and shows all sort of compression artifacts.

Lloyd M Mar 13, 2018 1:15 pm EST
BLURRY print on my copy as well. Headache inducing, even if I do enjoy the content of RC.

Mar 13, 2018 12:33 pm EST
The PDF was updated today. Apparently "The book has been rescanned and page references in the book have been linked." However, there are two different versions downloadable, neither of them with linked page references and neither of them the same file size as the last version I downloaded. Which one is the current version?

Jeff M Mar 13, 2018 1:44 pm EST
PURCHASER Flag comment as inappropriate.
I have the original download from Feb 15 and the size is 164.3MB and has an outline that I can click to different areas (D&D_Rules_Cyclopedia_(Basic).pdf
The DDB_RulesCyclopedia.pdf & RulesCyclopedia-Basic.pdf doesn't have an outline. The DDB* is 163.6MB while the RulesCyclopedia-Basic.pdf is 96.8MB.
Something changed and just recently the DDB* and Rulescyclopedia have been removed and D&D_Rules_Cyclopedia_(Basic).pdf has been put in place but 94.5MB in size.

Jeff M Mar 13, 2018 1:53 pm EST
The new D&D_Rules_Cyclopedia_(Basic).pdf from today looks like the RulesCyclopedia-Basic.pdf. not the same as the Feb15 downloaded file that is sharp and not blurry with an Outline.

PDF is 9.99
SC is 11.52
HC is 16.12
add 2 bucks for Print plus PDF

My advice - hold off until the issue is corrected.

Thanks to The Taverner that pointed this out to me.

edit: updated yet again since this post went up. I've been told its now less smudgey, still random blurry pages. Images are sharper. I'm guessing still not ready for prime time.

Tuesday, March 13, 2018

Goblins Henchman over on G Plus pinged me earlier today to ask if I had looked at his "proof of concept" Spreadsheet Adventure Module idea, where text is basically linked to an adventures map as a pin or pop out (I have no idea about the proper technology)

I hadn't seen it, but as the video in question is a mere 5 minutes in length, I've seen it now and damn - this would work great, especially with a sandbox type adventure setting where, instead of looking at the map and referring to the hex number or the keyed adventure location, you just click on it and the info pop up right over the map.

Could you present an adventure just using this method? Doubtful, as it doesn't make for a convenient first read through (and GH notes this) but as a supplement to an adventure it would rock.

I don't know the time involved in making such and it might not be cost effective (time-wise), especially on larger releases, but for some smaller releases it may be a selling point.

Add your thought's here or comment on the video. I'm sure Goblins Henchman would be happy to get your feedback.

The first folks I met in the booth were authors Keith Hershey and Tom Knauss, who were very friendly and knew of Bob’s work at Black Gate. Tom was the author of their excellent environmental books, including Perilous Vistas and the upcoming Icebound.

We quickly struck up a conversation around the big news of the show — Paizo’s announcement of a Second Edition of Pathfinder. Had the announcement taken them by surprise? In a word, yes. Tom said they were “blindsided” by it, and in fact they’d had to cancel an upcoming First Edition Pathfinder title. Did they think all the attention to the upcoming Second Edition would negatively impact sales of their extensive Pathfinder back catalog?

In response, they wordlessly pointed me towards the table where their first edition-compatible Pathfinder titles were stacked next to a scale. A large sign next to the scale read “Pathfinder by the POUND!! $5″

Heh. There more about the Frogs, The Trolls, Northwind Adventures, the Goodman Games booth and more in the original Black Gate article. Its a good read, whether you attended Gary Con or not and I giver it my highest recommendation.

Monday, March 12, 2018

Rach and I Ubered from Gary Con to Milwaukee for our flight home. Uber was a few bucks more than the car service we had called, but the car service cancelled 10 minutes after we made our reservation. Ah well.

There was no line at the TSA checkpoint at the airport. All was well until Rach's bag got pulled for inspection, followed by mine.

Rach's bag got pulled for trying to pass 8 ozs of hair conditioner through the carry on checkpoint. She knew better but bought it at the Grand Geneva Spa. Oh well.

My luggage got pulled for dice. More specifically, my dice bag with my original set of dice from 1979. When the TSA agent located the culprits she smiled. I'm guessing gamers were an issue over the last 36 hours or so.

Okay, enough for tonight. I'm beat to shit. I do have more con related stuff to share. Want to get 20% off at the Frog God Website? I've got the skinny...

Sunday, March 11, 2018

Last day of Gary Con today. We sold all but 11 Pathfinder books at 5 bucks a pound. Damn, but it was good sale.

We has many empty crates at the Frog God Booth while packing up, and that is always a good thing.

Packing up the Rappan Athuk terrain was not my job, but i did have to move the containers to a Frog God hotel room. I have no idea how all those pink "popcorn" packing kernels got all over the parking lot. Musta been gremlins.

I've been pretty much told I'm running at least two sessions a con for the Frogs going forward. They will generally be in the evenings, as the mornings and afternoons I'll be manning the booth. Yes, I may be influenced with beer.

There are a nice handful of follow up Gary Con posts that will be shared this week, including my thoughts on how to run a gaming session with dungeon terrain already on the table.

Highlight of my day was getting to meet my Milwaukee to NYC airplane companion again, but this time at the Frog God Booth (along with her husband and mother in law). Yes, Colette, Rach and I will find a way to make it to the Hinterlands Bar in Brooklyn for some gaming.

I was working the Frog God booth when I was told shortly after 2 PM: "Dude, you gotta run a 5e Rappan Athuk session - our DM never made it to the Con!"

There were a few issues with that:

1 - I don't run 5e.

2 - I didn't bring any of the 5e rules with me.

3 - I don't run 5e.

Thankfully:

1 - I ran the same table last night for Swords & Wizardry

2 - I can run SWL pretty much without opening the rules

So, I got to the table and announced that yes, you are expecting a 5e session but your DM isn't here. I own but do not run 5e, so therefore we are going to be playing Swords & Wizardry. I'll do my best to ensure everyone has fun and if for some reason you don't, et me know where i went wrong at the end of the session.

15 minutes later, we were up and running. No one left the table at the start (but two dropped out at the 2 hr break and we added a new player)

Results?

1 - Only one PC death, and that spot was quickly filled by the character's torchbearer.

2 - Two players (a couple) went to the Frog God booth immediately after to grab their free Swords & Wizardry Legion folders (we have more available at the Frog God Booth - just tell them Tenkar sent you)

3 - Treasure was well earned and the players, for the most part, played it damn smart. The dice were in their favor, as least more so than Friday Night's group.

4 - I had a blast and feedback from the players was that they had a good time too.

5 - It left me exhausted, but in a good way. The area we were in was very noisy, and i had to keep my voice projected fairly strongly to be heard.

We lose an hour tonight. Time for bed. Drop by the Frog God Booth tomorrow and take some freebies (and some $5 a pound Pathfinder. Shit, at that price you can convert to S&W right on the actual page. Imagine being able to write in your $15 copy of Swords of Air ;)

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Why "Swords & Wizardry?"

Believe me when I say I have them all in dead tree format. I have OSRIC in full size, trade paperback and the Player's Guide. I have LL and the AEC (and somewhere OEC, but I can't find it at the moment). Obviously I have Basic Fantasy RPG. Actually, I have the whole available line in print. Way too much Castles & Crusades. We all know my love for the DCC RPG. I even have Dark Dungeons in print, the Delving Deeper boxed set, Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea (thank you Kickstarter) (edit) BOTH editions of LotFP's Weird Fantasy and will soon have some dead tree copies of the Greyhawk Grognards Adventures Dark & Deep shipping shortly in my grubby hands awaiting a review..

I am so deep in the OSR when I come up for breath it's for the OSR's cousin, Tunnels & Trolls (and still waiting on dT&T to ship).

So, out of all that, why Swords & Wizardry? Why, when I have been running a AD&D 1e / OSRIC campaign in Rappan Athuk am I using Swords & Wizardry and it's variant, Crypts & Things, for the second campaign? (Actually, now running a S&W Complete campaign, soon to be with multiple groups)

Because the shit works.

It's easy for lapsed gamers to pick up and feel like they haven't lost a step. I can house rule it and it doesn't break. It plays so close to the AD&D of my youth and college years (S&W Complete especially) that it continually surprises me. Just much less rules hopping than I remember. (my God but I can run it nearly without the book)

I grab and pick and steal from just about all OSR and Original resources. They seem to fit into S&W with little fuss. It may be the same with LL and the rest, but for me the ease of use fit's my expectations with S&W.

Even the single saving throw. That took me longer to adjust to, but even that seems like a natural to me now. Don't ask me why, it just does. Maybe it's the simplicity of it. At 45 48, simplicity and flexibility while remaining true to the feel of the original is an OSR hat trick for me ;)

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